Effects of Peer Feedback on EFL Student Writers at Different Levels of English Proficiency: A Japanese Context

Abstract

A study was conducted to explore the nature and effectiveness of peer feedback in EFL writing classrooms. High- and low-proficient Japanese EFL learners participated in the study where they exchanged comments with peers after receiving training in peer feedback. The two groups were compared in terms of their pre and post-tests, original drafts and rewrites, peer comments, and responses to the comments. It was found that peer feedback had overall positive effects on the compositions for both the high- and low-proficient students, with different patterns observed in the relationship between the comments and revisions that characterized the two groups.